Transfer mechanisms designed to automatically move larger caliber ammunition projectiles in and out of storage magazines have been developed for use in various military vehicles. An example of one such transfer mechanism is described in Maher U.S. Pat. No. 5,212,338 dated May 18, 1993. That system is intended to handle only ammunition projectiles, since the bag propellant charges used to propel these projectiles conventionally are loaded manually in such a system. Such manual loading of bag propellant charges is typical of most conventional large caliber weapons systems.
The planned introduction of advanced artillery systems calls for the use of a fully automated ammunition handling capability including the propellant charges. For one of these advanced systems, the propellant charges will actually be molded, combustible containers filled with either ball or stick propellant. An illustration of these new propellant charge modules, referred to as Modular Artillery Charge Systems (MACS), is shown schematically in FIG. 1 and is designated by the numeral 10. The MAC modules each include a combustible annular case body 12 including an inner conical extension 16, a combustible case coating 14, and a combustible case end cap 20 which includes cone extension 22. Individual powder grains 18 are contained within case body 12 and case end cap 20, arrayed around a hollow central core 24 formed by conical extensions 16 and 22 together with tube 26. Inside of core 24 typically are located ignitor-containing bags 28. Covers 30,32 are provided to seal the ignitor bags 28 in core 24.
As one skilled in the art would appreciate, in operating a large caliber gun such as a self-propelled howitzer, a selective number of the individual propellant charges 10 would be used, depending upon the type of projectile, range, etc. required. The MACS transfer mechanism then ideally must be able to selectively transfer into or access from, the storage magazine any single charge, or multiple charges up to all the charges in the carrier. Moreover, space and weight concerns for an automated gun supply system may necessitate a common transfer mechanism to serve a projectile storage magazine on one side of a common conveyor and a MACS module storage magazine on the other side.
However, known transfer mechanisms are configured for handling a single elongated projectile from magazine carriers such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,175,388. Whereas each carrier in a projectile magazine stores only one projectile it would be desirable and more space efficient to store multiple MACS modules in a single carrier.